Draven no longer insisted as he listened to her. "I don't plan on doing more in bed either. Instead, I plan on taking you somewhere."
"We are going out?" Her eyes sparkled at the pleasant surprise. "Where?"
"You will know once we go there."
Though she was excited to go on an outing with Draven, she immediately calmed herself. "Don't you have to go to work? I understand you have been very busy these days."
"Work can wait," he said and got out of the bed, causing the sheets covering him to slide down, exposing his naked body for her to appreciate.
With a surprised yelp, Ember looked away, covering her head with the blanket like she had seen something she shouldn't have. Draven noticed her beet red face before she was able to hide it, and it caused a small smile to appear on his normally expressionless face.
'She loves to act bold but it doesn't take her a long time to act shy again.'
He pulled the sheets away from her, only to hear her scream his name, "Draven! No! What are you doing?!"
Not answering, he lifted her struggling form in his arms. "I told you we have to go somewhere."
He carried her towards his side chamber where the pool of hot water was located.
She looked at the pool and asked, "Why did you bring me here?"
"Having a bath together will save time and water."
"Since when are you worried about saving water? Not like Agartha lacks it."
"Starting today," he replied, only to hear her amused laughter.
Draven carried her inside the pool, and from the warmth of the water, it seemed like Erlos had silently prepared it early on before she woke up. He made her sit in front of her while he sat behind her near the edge of the pool. Her small back was pressed against his muscular chest as she sat between his legs, his hands gently wrapped around her, playing with her smooth white skin.
The entire time, he felt her shoulders trembling, quietly attempting to hide her laughter.
"What's so funny??" he asked, curious.
"Oh, I just remembered something. Remember the day when I entered your bath for the first time by mistake? I was trying to catch that bird, Ray, back then," she replied, still giggling. "How careless and silly I was, wasn't I?"
"Was?" she heard his doubtful tone.
She frowned and turned her head to look at him. "Are you implying I am still the same?"
Her face looked adorable whenever she was about to get angry. Draven wanted to nod, but not wanting to ruin her good mood, he carefully chose his next words.
"Not the same," he replied. "A little less troublesome than before."
"Troublesome?" she exclaimed with a frown. "Me?"
"Don't you know?" he asked, his expression innocent, as if he was saying nothing but the truth.
"Oh wow," she scoffed. "If I am troublesome then why did you keep me here? You even made me your mate."
Sensing her mood turning sour, he wrapped his arms around her and planted a soft kiss on her forehead. "Because I like troubles. Life without trouble is not interesting."
"So I am a tool to make your life interesting, huh?"
She frowned and casually shrugged off his arms, turning her face away from him. She even wanted to move away from him, but there was no way Draven would let that happen.
"You are someone who brings color to my dark life."
At this response from him, she could no longer insist on being angry with him. She could only settle for a pout. After some time, she sensed him moving and found him pouring a bottle over her skin, gently rubbing her shoulder before moving his hands towards her back to help wash her.
As he continued to wash her, she could only sigh. "Well, I guess I am a bit troublesome. Back then, I remember being scared of you. You were so angry when I fell into the water and you could not wait to get me out of here."
"That was for your own good," he replied in a casual manner. "By now, you must have understood what I could have done to you had you stayed longer."
Ember nodded. It was not difficult to imagine. Their relationship back then was superficial. If he had lost his patience back then and forced himself on her, she would have been scarred for life. Even if she would be later educated about mating and the bond, she would have hated him.
Fortunately, Draven had been patient with her, allowing her to adjust first, and though there had been ups and downs in their relationship, he had always done his best to accommodate her wants and needs.
"Thank you for bearing with the troubles I caused you, and uhm, thank you for not losing your patience with me."
"You are my mate. That is what I am supposed to do."
"Are all males like this with their females?"
"Perhaps. I don't know about others."
She chuckled. "Well, I guess we are unique. No one but you has a silly and troublesome human mate testing your patience every so often."
"I would never have you any other way."
"Seems like being silly has good sides as well."
"You can be like that only with me. With others, you need to be smarter."
"I will."
After playing in the water for who-knows-how-long, the couple finally left the side chamber, and Ember returned to her own room to change into outside clothes. Upon hearing her plans for the day, Ember's servants prepared her thoroughly, giving all their best as their master was going out with her mate, the King.
When she was ready to leave, Draven came to her chamber to fetch her. "Shall we?"
She nodded but mumbled, "Still didn't tell me where we are going."
Draven ignored her complaining and held her hand to pull her closer to him. Even before she could recover from his sudden action, both of them disappeared from her bedchamber.
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